New Europe: France + Gender | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/world/series/new-europe-france+gender
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New Europe: Why France's gender code makes life hard for womenhttps://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/mar/25/new-europe-france-women-gender-code
Zoe Williams looks at the challenges for feminism amid growing pressure over how females should look and behave <br /><p>The twin stereotypes about gender in France are wholly contradictory: on the one hand, they have titanic feminist theorists, from Simone de Beauvoir via Helene Cixious to Virginie Despentes, a tranche of thinkers so heavyweight that the rest of Europe couldn't match it if we pooled all our feminists. On the other hand, the mainstream culture looks quite sexist. The women seem bedevilled by standards that are either unattainable (to be a perfect size eight) or demeaning in themselves (to be restrained, demure, moderate in all things, poised; a host of qualities that all mean "quiet"). But this dichotomy is impossible. Either the feminist intellectuals had no impact, or the sexism is a myth.</p><p>Elsa Dorlin, associate professor at the Sorbonne, currently a visiting professor in California, dispatches the first quantity pretty swiftly. "French feminism is a kind of American construction," she says. "Figures like Helene Cixous are not really recognised in France. In civil society, there is a hugely anti-feminist mentality."</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/mar/25/new-europe-france-women-gender-code">Continue reading...</a>FranceEuropeWorld newsFeminismWomenLife and styleGenderInequalitySocietyFri, 25 Mar 2011 08:00:06 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/mar/25/new-europe-france-women-gender-codePhotograph: Boris Horvat/AFPUnemployed French women get makeovers for job interviews under the Action Relooking initiative. Photograph: Boris Horvat/AFPPhotograph: Boris Horvat/AFPUnemployed French women get makeovers for job interviews under the Action Relooking initiative. Photograph: Boris Horvat/AFPZoe Williams2011-03-25T08:00:06Z